They joined 
Michigan fans 
at Forest Hill 

Cemetery

By MAX COHEN 

Managing Sports Editor

Jeff 
Holzhausen 
laughed 

when 
he 
heard 
that 
Jim 

Harbaugh might be interested 
in joining his yearly tradition.

Each 
year 
since 
1997, 

Holzhausen has gathered a 

group of Michigan fans to walk 
to the graves of former Michigan 
announcer Bob Ufer and former 
Michigan coach Fielding Yost 
before the Wolverines play Ohio 
State. Former Michigan coach 
Bo Schembechler’s grave was 
added in 2007 after he passed 
away before the Ohio State game 
in 2006.

But never had there been 

a participant of Harbaugh’s 
stature.

Holzhausen first heard of 

Harbaugh’s interest in attending 
six weeks ago, but he didn’t 
fully 
believe 
the 
Michigan 

football coach would actually 
show up until he did. His 
appearance meant a great deal 
to Holzhausen.

“You’re going to tell me the 

guy’s a flight risk to the NFL 
when on a Tuesday night before 
the biggest game of the year, he’s 
out here?” Holzhausen said.

Holzhausen estimated that 

200 people showed up to the 
Forest Hill Cemetery Tuesday 
night. Harbaugh joined in right 
as the group arrived at the grave 
of Schembechler, his former 
college coach.

When 
Harbaugh 
arrived, 

Holzhausen said, he spoke a 
few words about Schembechler. 
He attributed all of his success 
to things he learned from 
Schembechler, and discussed 
how much his college coach 
meant to him.

Then Holzhausen handed 

Harbaugh a maize and blue 
hammer and a buckeye nut. 
It has been a tradition for 
Holzhausen and his friends 
to smash a buckeye nut when 
they tailgate before Michigan 
football games, and they did 
the same thing when they first 
walked 
to 
Schembechler’s 

grave in 2007. Harbaugh joined 
their ranks in the tradition 
Tuesday.

But after Harbaugh left and 

much of the crowd dispersed, 
there was one more surprise 
visitor for Holzhausen. That 
was Michigan 
fifth-year 
senior 
quarterback 
Jake Rudock, 
who 
also 

showed up at 
the cemetary. 
As a transfer 
to 
Michigan, 

he had never 
taken part in 
the tradition, 
but his father told him about it 
when they talked on the phone 
Monday.

“My dad had found out about 

it and said it’s just a pretty cool 
thing,” 
Rudock 
said. 
“He’s 

never heard of 
anything like 
that.” 

Rudock has 

made his mark 
on 
Michigan 

history 
in 

his lone year 
playing for the 
Wolverines, 
becoming 
the 
first 

quarterback 

in team history to throw for 
more than 250 yards in three 
consecutive games Saturday. But 
while he’s in Ann Arbor, Rudock 

has also taken the opportunity 
to learn about Michigan history. 
His family members frequently 
tell him new facts, and he hears 
tidbits from fans as well.

Tuesday 
night, 
Rudock 

got to experience the history 
firsthand. 
He 
walked 
to 

Schembechler’s grave, and like 
Harbaugh, smashed the buckeye 
nut.

Rudock then walked with 

Holzhausen and the group to 
the graves of Ufer and Yost. The 
fans in attendance made sure 
to watch out for Rudock when 
he walked on the icy trail of the 
cemetery, just days before the 
biggest game of his career.

“If 
Jake 
slips, 
someone 

throw yourself under him,” one 
member of the group joked.

Rudock paid his respects 

at the graves before heading 
back to the rigor of game week. 
Holzhausen was impressed by 
both Harbaugh and Rudock 
during the tradition.

“Both of them, it talks about 

their commitment to Michigan, 
their 
love 
of 
Michigan,” 

Holzhausen said.

After the coach and his 

quarterback showed up, it will 
not be difficult for Holzhausen 
to rank his favorite moments 
from the 19-year tradition.

“1A and 1B,” he said.

8A — Wednesday, November 25, 2015
Sports
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com

Harbaugh, Rudock participate in annual grave walk

LUNA ANNA ARCHEY/Daily

Jake Rudock learned a little bit about Michigan history when he attended the annual grave walk Tuesday night.

“My dad found 
out about it and 
it’s just a pretty 

cool thing.”

Wolverines look for better 
defense against Ohio State

By JAKE LOURIM 

Managing Sports Editor

Six weeks ago, Michigan 

coach Jim Harbaugh reached 
into his bank of allusions for a 
motivational tool. That week, the 
Wolverines took on Michigan 
State, which had dominated 
them for the previous two years 
by an average of 23.5 points.

Harbaugh urged his team 

to move past that history, 
referencing a quote from “The 
Lion King”: “The past can hurt. 
You can either run from it, or 
embrace it and learn from it.”

Fast forward to this week, 

when the No. 10 Michigan 
football team (6-1 Big Ten, 9-2 
overall) hosts Ohio State, and the 
quote applies again — especially 
for Michigan’s defense. The 
Wolverines have kept the past 
two meetings with the Buckeyes 
close, losing on a last-minute 
two-point conversion in 2013 

and falling behind only late in 
the game last season. But the 
defense has been the issue, 
allowing 42 points in each of 
those games.

“You can’t worry about the 

past,” said junior safety Dymonte 
Thomas. “The past is the past for 
a reason. The only thing you can 
do is look forward, so the only 
thing we’re looking forward to is 
the game Saturday.”

The Buckeyes have averaged 

471 yards in the past two games 
against Michigan, including 313 
on the ground at 7.4 per carry. 
Quarterback J.T. Barrett broke 
his foot in last year’s game, but 
only after totaling 265 yards 
and three touchdowns. He will 
be back under center against 
Michigan on Saturday.

“But this year, we’re a new 

team,” Thomas said. “We’ve got 
a new coaching staff. And we’ve 
got a lot of players stepping it up 
this year.”

While the Buckeyes gashed 

two solid Michigan defenses in 
the past two years, this year’s 
edition is even better. Despite 
struggles against opponents such 
as Minnesota and Indiana in the 
second half of the season, the 
Wolverines appear to be back on 
track after a strong performance 
at Penn State. They’re focused on 
replicating games like those, not 
specifically on improving from 
two 
lackluster 
performances 

against Ohio State.

“If we do our techniques and 

our fundamentals, it’s kind of 
hard to beat us,” said senior 
safety Jarrod Wilson. “So we’re 
just worried about ourselves.”

Neither the coaches nor the 

players have discussed past 
games against the Buckeyes, 
according to Wilson, but they 
still have their keys to this 
week’s game.

They have to limit Ohio State’s 

“explosive players,” as Wilson 
called them: Barrett, running 
back Ezekiel Elliott and wide 
receivers Michael Thomas and 
Braxton Miller. In preparation 
for Saturday’s game, Michigan 
watched different clips of every 
game the Buckeyes have played 
this season.

That 
practice 
helps 
the 

Wolverines stay focused on 
this week, though no game of 
the rivalry exists in a vacuum. 
Wilson, who is from Akron, 
Ohio, still talks to former players 
about their careers. Their record 
against Ohio State is always one 
of the first topics to come up. 
Wilson, meanwhile, is 0-3, which 
gives him extra motivation for 
Senior Day on Saturday.

“It’s always an extra edge — 

one last time to give it all I got 
and hopefully come out with a 
win,” he said.

Recent history is not on 

Wilson’s side, but that’s only 
history. The Wolverines are 
confident this year will be 
different.

“Of 
course,” 
said 
junior 

defensive end Taco Charlton. 
“That’s why we’re playing. It’s a 
new year, new game.”

ALLISON FARRAND/Daily

Jarrod Wilson and Michigan’s defense will look to improve against Ohio State.

